It has been quiet for a while in the life of the world's most famous harmonica player, but now his touring schedule is in full swing again. Toots Thielemans, who can boast a sixty-year-career, is a tough cookie. This time around the musician presents a genuine bebop quartet, including his regular pianist Kenny Werner, bassist Scott Colley and drummer Antonio Sanchez. Toots' roots are in bebop, but no doubt there will also be some songs of Harold Arlen, since he's Toots' favorite composer to whom he dedicated his latest album. Toots started out in the fifties as the guitarist and harmonica player of the George Shearing Quintet. A European tour with Benny Goodman forced his international breakthrough. Toots developed a new sound by means of a unisono style of guitar playing and whistling. In 1962 he composed Bluesette, a song that made him world-famous. He recorded with jazz greats like Ella Fitzgerald, Shirley Horn, Quincy Jones, Dizzy Gillespie and pop stars like Billy Joel and Paul Simon. He also recorded for film and TV (Turks Fruit, Midnight Cowboy, Baantjer).
